Need some Meatless Monday inspiration? This Buffalo Chickpea Quesadilla recipe has you covered, with boldly flavored and beautifully textured smashed buffalo chickpeas and irresistibly gooey melted cheese.
This is one outstanding meatless quesadilla recipe. And it’s so easy to make, I promise! Chickpeas and Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce are the key ingredients to making a superb Meatless Monday meal that you can have ready in 30 minutes.
Chickpeas in a quesadilla?
If you’re initially skeptical of a chickpea quesadilla, let me resolve all doubt as your concerns probably revolve around 1) shape and 2) flavor.
Shape
The real beauty of chickpeas is their versatility when it comes to texture. A quick buzz in the food processor takes care of a chickpea’s “problematic” shape for quesadilla usage. The texture is somewhat meaty for lack of a better adjective; it has substance and toothsomeness, all qualities that make it a fantastic quesadilla ingredient.
Flavor
Chickpeas don’t have much flavor, do they? The humble garbanzo bean is pretty blah on its lonesome, but that’s perfectly all right! Chickpeas are a blank slate upon which flavor can be written. Get some Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce involved along with onion and garlic and you’ve got a flavorful quesadilla filling on your hands.
How do you make a Buffalo Chickpea Quesadilla?
You will need the following ingredients to make tasty Buffalo Chickpea Quesadillas. This recipe makes two large quesadillas.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (15.5) ounce can of chickpeas
- ½ small yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, finely diced
- 3 tablespoon Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce
- 2 large flour tortillas
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
INSTRUCTIONS
- Strain and rinse the chickpeas, then add to a food processor. Pulse three to four times until the chickpeas are broken down a bit. Be careful not to overdo it; you want to preserve a bit of texture, not make hummus. You could also smash the chickpeas up a bit with a fork.
- Melt butter (or heat olive oil) in a pan over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for 45 seconds, stirring the whole time.
- Add the smashed chickpeas and 3 tablespoons Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through.
- Remove pan from heat and set aside.
- Toss the shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheeses together to combine them.
- Lay a tortilla on a cutting board and sprinkle half with ½ cup shredded cheese. Top with half of the buffalo chickpea mixture. Finish by sprinkling with another ½ cup shredded cheese.
- Fold the naked half of the tortilla over the top of the side with fillings. Repeat the step above with the second quesadilla.
- Heat a large pan or griddle to medium heat. When warmed up, spritz the surface with cooking spray. Add quesadillas and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until crisp and toasty looking (you may need to cook one at a time, depending on the size of your cooking surface).
- Remove from heat and cut into four slices. Serve with ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing.
Food Snob Alert! Grate ‘yo cheese!
I frequently get shit for this, but I always buy cheese in blocks and grate it myself. I don’t care if this makes me a snob, I love it. Pre-shredded cheese is coated in cellulose to prevent it from clumping. Nothing wrong with it health-wise (that I’m aware of) but when I want cheese, I want CHEESE, not cheese and cellulose, and other miscellaneous additives. And it melts like trash. Ever had nachos made with pre-shredded cheese? Yuck. Grate ‘yo cheese!
Who loves condiments?
If you love condiments, give these easy homemade ones a try! Try pairing them with this Buffalo Chickpea Quesadilla.
- Roasted Garlic Chimichurri - a fresh and herbaceous dipping sauce
- Roasted Garlic Guacamole - a unique take on traditional guacamole
- Spicy Pico de Gallo - fiery and irresistibly fresh
- Citrus Jalapeno Salsa - fresh, acidic, punctuated with pleasant hits of heat
Give these other fantastic quesadilla recipes and complimentary sides a try.
- Dill Pickle Quesadilla
- Chorizo and Caramelized Onion Quesadilla
- Restaurant Style Refried Beans from a Can
Buffalo Chickpea Quesadilla
Ingredients
- 1 15.5 ounce can of chickpeas
- ½ small yellow onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, finely diced
- 3 tablespoon Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce
- 2 large flour tortillas
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Strain and rinse the chickpeas, then add to a food processor. Pulse three to four times until the chickpeas are broken down a bit. Be careful not to overdo it; you want to preserve a bit of texture, not make hummus. You could also smash the chickpeas up a bit with a fork.
- Melt butter (or heat olive oil) in a pan over medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for 45 seconds, stirring the whole time.
- Add the smashed chickpeas and 3 tablespoons Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo Wing sauce. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally until heated through.
- Remove pan from heat and set aside.
- Toss the shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheeses together to combine them.
- Lay a tortilla on a cutting board and sprinkle half with ½ cup shredded cheese. Top with half of the buffalo chickpea mixture. Finish by sprinkling with another ½ cup shredded cheese.
- Fold the naked half of the tortilla over the top of the side with fillings. Repeat the step above with the second quesadilla.
- Heat a large pan or griddle to medium heat. When warmed up, spritz the surface with cooking spray. Add quesadillas and cook for 5-7 minutes on each side, or until crisp and toasty looking (you may need to cook one at a time, depending on the size of your cooking surface).
- Remove from heat and cut into four slices. Serve with ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing.
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